COLLIER COUNTY -- There was a bad odor taking over Southwest Florida Sunday morning. Collier County Sheriff's Department released a statement that the smell was coming from the landfill on Collier Boulevard.
"The Collier County Solid Waste Department is telling us that the strong sulfur smell traveling throughout the county is originating from the county landfill off Collier Boulevard north of I-75," the statement read.
According to officials, the smell is because of the increase in solid waste leftover from Hurricane Irma and the recent rains the last couple of weeks.
Golden Gate City resident, Kate Durden, said the smell began to permeate into her home. “It’s just a permeating smell. It’s just kinda sitting there. I think because it’s in our house, it’s almost like the smell has no where to go,” she said. "Sewage. It smells like a straight sewage smell."
Durden says that she spent the day trying to air it out by using fans and opening up windows.
However, she wasn't the only one that had a whiff of it. In fact, residents all over Southwest Florida -- from Collier County to Cape Coral to North Fort Myers to Sarasota, all could smell the odor.
The reason for the smell traveling so far through the various areas could be because of the five to fifteen mile winds this morning.
Fox 4 contacted Cape Coral Police Department, but they could not confirm the wind was the reason why.
Collier County Sheriff's Department says Waste Management International will be adding a mixture of mulch, dirt, and shell to the landfill to help reduce the odor on Monday.
